Dark Encore
by Delphi
Summary: Post-Bloodlust, Leila's granddaughter has set out on the road of the vampire hunter. All hell will break loose while she's chasing a quarry, though...Epilogue up! This story is complete! Please review!
1. Prelude to Trouble

Dark Encore

Chapter One: Prelude to Trouble

"Without a soul

My spirit sleeping somewhere cold

Until you find it there and lead it back 

Home…"

- Evanescence, "Bring Me To Life"

~*~

It was night. It made sense for the van to be traveling at night, but not only because of the lack of traffic.  The reasons for the lack of traffic could be traced to the fact that those who would have been traveling at night were humans, and they were afraid.  It was whispered, spoken, screamed that the vampire race was slowly, but surely, gaining in number.  It had been about one or two generations since the greatest of the vampire hunters, the Markus Brothers, had died, and it had been around ten or so years since their 'sister' Leila had died as well.  Since then, the only vampire hunters around were incompetent fools who more often than not failed while chasing after quarry too difficult for them to defeat.

An exception to this rule was D, the dhampire vampire-hunter who had yet to die off.  He had lived long enough to honor a promise, and during that time he had seemed to be in his typical good health, which is to say, he hadn't looked like he was going to die any time soon.  Good health was difficult to gauge in one whose skin was almost as pale as a corpse's, and who was half undead; therefore, all that could be said was that the last time D had been seen in public, he had looked like he wasn't about to die anytime soon.

Yes, D was an exception in a generation of failing vampire hunters – but he was not the only one.  Vampire hunters who actually knew what they were doing were almost entirely gone, but they still existed.  One of them was the woman who was Leila's granddaughter, the girl who had talked to D at the funeral.  She had grown up to bear an uncanny resemblance to her late grandmother, save that she wore more modest clothes.  The outfit was crimson and lightly armored, as well as tight enough for the armor to serve its purpose, but it was not skintight as her grandmother's had been.  She had learned how to fire a blaster her grandmother had once had, as well as how to use blades if need be.  She much preferred the blaster, though.

Her name was Erika, and she drove the van that sped through the night.

She was not alone in the van.  Sitting near a window, on a rather hastily made seat, was a pale young woman dressed in a pair of black jeans, black boots, a loose white shirt, and a chainmail vest that did not seem to befit her.  Deep crimson hair curled slightly past her shoulders, swept back in an inelegant braid to keep it from getting in her way.  Light brown eyes with elegant lashes were half-closed, giving the girl a look of slight sorrow.  A quiver full of arrows was strapped to her back, and she held a crossbow in one small hand.  The slightly younger girl – her name was Rose – looked out of place in the van, with the duty of one who killed to make a living.  She looked as if she should have been at home, perhaps taking care of a pet or of an ill relative.  Nobody who had contracted Erika's help, however, had questioned the presence of the girl.

The girl in question closed her eyes entirely, put one hand over her mouth, and yawned a little.  Re-opening her eyes, she called to Erika, "Please tell me why we are out killing people again?  I don't remember…"

Erika's voice, one with slight hints of a Southern accent, responded coolly, "They're not people, Rose, they're vampires, and there's been an increase in their numbers lately.  Not only that, but there's a rumor going around that a Noble's decided to show his ugly mug again, terrorizing locals that go too close to his lair and all that.  That's the one we're after, in case you forgot.  His name's Mei-something…Meier Link, if I remember correctly.  Story has it that back in Grandma Leila's day he fell for some human girl, but a bunch of things went wrong, Grandma and the Markus's got involved, and they flew off into space to be happy together.  I think that's how it ended, I don't know for sure.  From the way Grandma phrased it though, it looked more like the girl wound up dead."

There was silence for a moment, and then Rose said quietly, "And then what happened?"  Erika looked over her shoulder slightly, surprised.  The look on Rose's face was that of deep thought, of a withdrawing from this world into her own mind.  Rose did that often, but it was still worrisome when she did.  Or rather, it had been worrisome ever since four years ago…Erika shook her head; no remembering the past now.

"Well, from the looks of it, he might have reached wherever it was he and his girl were planning to go, but she wasn't going with him if you know what I mean, and I guess he snapped.  I don't know how it happened, but he's back now, and he's causing trouble.  Guess he couldn't take that other humans could be happy when his girl was dead and they couldn't be happy, so he decided to go back to what vampires do best."

Rose said quietly, "It's so sad…"  But in the middle of the word 'sad,' the van squealed and stopped abruptly, causing her to lose her balance and be thrown into a wall.  Her sentence turned out more like, "It's so sa-OOF!"  A loud 'thunk,' a groan, and then the sound of someone sliding to the van's floor said exactly what had happened to Rose: she had almost literally flown into the wall, groaned in pain, and then gravity had taken hold of the girl, dragging her to the ground once more.

Erika, after killing the ignition so that it wouldn't cause any trouble later, sprung up from the driver's seat and walked back.  She peered around the corner to look at her friend.  "You okay there, Rose?  Didn't get yourself injured too badly, right?"

Rose gave her older friend a weak smile after crawling away from her uncomfortable location against the wall and perching once again on her seat.  "Yes, I think so.  Perhaps we shouldn't drive this van anymore, though; it seems a little dangerous, don't you think?"  Her utterly innocent look said that she wasn't really implying that they give up the business, and yet that was exactly what she was saying with those words.  It was almost as if she had forgotten…

"We've been over this, and over this, and over this.  We are not quitting the business.  You remember what happened four years ago, don't you?  Hell, it's almost five years ago now!"  Erika's voice softened a bit, "You're like the big sister I don't have, Rose, and after what happened four years ago…do you think I'll let vampires walk the earth the way they do, knowing what they almost did?  How you nearly…Never mind, you just don't seem to get it."  

Her voice then resumed its usual brusqueness as she continued, "Stay in the van, but make sure one of the windows is open so you can fire if need be.  I'm going outside to see what happened."


	2. The Dangers of Hunting

Dark Encore

Chapter Two: The Dangers of Hunting…

"Wake up

Grab a brush and put a little makeup

Hide the scars to fade away the shakeup

Why'd you leave the keys upon the table?

There you go creating another fable"

 - System of a Down, "Chop Suey"

Disclaimer: It's a chapter late, but here I go – I do not own Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust.  I don't even own a DVD of it yet; I'm currently borrowing it from a very nice friend of mine.  To an extent, I don't even own Erika because she was first seen at the end of the movie, although I do own what's happened to her as well as her name.  The only character I really own is Rose.  Is that enough of a disclaimer?

~*~

The moment Erika walked out of the van to take a look at what was wrong, she could see that it wasn't the work of a vampire or a demon, or anything like that.  She had been responsible for most of the van's repairs enough times to know when something was sabotage, when it was a mechanical failure, and when it was due to her own driving skills failing her.  As it were, the current situation fell under the third category, for it was thus:

The van, her glorious van, had gotten a flat tire.  Upon further investigation of the situation under the moon's silvery light, she found out that there was a spike of some sort on the road behind her, exactly where the tire would have pricked itself.  Erika swore under her breath and called back to Rose: "We got a flat tire!  Get to the back and find the spare, will ya?"  The silence of the night answered her before she heard a murmur of assent and the sounds of someone frantically scrambling towards the back of the car.

At night, all was usually quiet to the point of total silence, which explained why Erika was able to hear those sounds.  She could also hear the faint rush of wind, the chirping of those birds that only went out at night, and other sounds that couldn't be heard during the day with all its noise.  Sighing, she looked away from the van out to the night scenery.  She, her companion, and the van were located on a road that wound around a cliff, heading towards a nearby town – the first they had seen in a few days.  The cliff in question overlooked a valley clothed in grass with the occasional tree or shrub appearing here and there.  Not, she mused, that that would make any difference if they fell over the edge of the cliff.

A quiet squeak heralded the opening of a window, and Erika looked over her shoulder back at the van.  A few moments later, both of Rose's pale cloth-covered arms could be seen from the window, and in the hands on the ends of those arms was the spare tire Erika had requested.  The person carrying the spare tire whimpered softly before unceremoniously dropping the spare tire; fortunately, Erika caught it before it hit the ground.  The blonde girl examined the tire before saying, "Thanks a million, Rose.  If you want, you can come outta that van next town we hit – it doesn't seem there are any vampires round here."

This time Rose's face did appear at the open window.  Her usually calm eyes now showed a look of excitement.  "Really?  Do you really mean it, Erika?  Can I really…?"  At Erika's amused nod, the red-haired girl let out a happy yell and disappeared from the window, presumably to go back to her seat.  Shaking her head, Erika returned to replacing the flat tire with the good one.

After repairs were done, Erika walked back into the van, sat back down at the driver's seat, turned the car back on, and drove towards the next town…

…and they were totally unaware of the dark shape watching the van from a ridge above them.  The shape in question was that of a man wearing a cloak, riding a horse.  The breed of the horse could not be ascertained in the deep darkness, but with its red eyes and the gleam on some parts of its body, it was probably at least partly cybernetic.  It could be seen this clearly because the moon appeared to be directly behind it.

The lone figure was silent, staring after them for a second before riding off.

Two hours later, still under the cloak of night, Erika and Rose had reached the town, and it wasn't two seconds into the town before they realized that while a vampire had not been responsible for the flat tire on their van, a vampire had definitely gotten to this town before them.

The first hint as to what had happened to the villagers was the fact that none of them were acting normally, i.e. staying in their homes or other places of residence, or out and about going to bars or doing some late-night shopping.  All twenty of the villagers were gathered in the street and staring hollowly at the visitors' van – while a welcoming committee was appreciated, this was overdoing it.

The second hint that something wasn't right was that all of the villagers were quite undead.  Their skins had all turned gray and stretched tightly over skeletal frames, their ears had pointed slightly, and their eyes were all crimson.  Add to that the fangs and the smell of death that could be smelled even inside the van, and it became insanely obvious that the villagers had been turned into zombies.

"Holy hell," whispered Erika.  She and Rose were still in the van, which was a good five or so feet away from the zombie villagers.  Erika had stopped the van, her hands white-knuckled as they still curled around the steering wheel.  Her eyes had widened and her lips were parted a bit in shock.  "Who did this to them? – **What** did this to them?!"

Rose quietly stumbled to the front of the van, managing to get there safely by way of staying close to one of the walls (not the one that jutted out halfway between the driver's area and the quarters, of course.)  She took a brief look at the villagers before her own eyes widened and she turned ashen.  "I-it was probably a vampire…" she whispered in shock.

Erika looked over at her companion and nodded grimly.  "Probably so," she said before turning her attention back towards what was in front of her.  "Get to the back, close all the windows except the one you're gonna fire out of, and be ready to fire.  I'm going to put the lights on at full blast and try to mow 'em down."  She revved up the car and prepared to move.  She would have done so immediately, were it not for the fact that Rose hadn't moved yet.  She glared over at Rose and barked, "I told you to get moving, kid!"  After Rose squeaked and ran off to do as she was told, Erika returned her attention to the task of driving and mowing down zombies at the same time.  It wasn't easy, but it had worked before and hopefully it would work again.

First she turned the high-beam headlights on.  She had made sure to get really bright headlights installed, so it was no wonder that the zombies hissed collectively and clawed at the air in front of them as if to stop the light or to regain their balance.  A smirk crossed the red-garbed hunter's face as she said, "Sleep tight, freaks."

Then she slammed her foot on the accelerator, and in the unnatural light the headlights created, she zoomed towards the group of zombies.

Author's Note: Short, I know, but if I put the fight scene in this chapter it'd make the chapter way too long, and I don't want to bore you readers to death!  (I'm not listening if you say I already have…)  I was also attempting for a cliffhanger here. Please review, reviews are much appreciated.


	3. Town of the Dead

Dark Encore

Chapter Three: Town of the Dead

"Come here

Pretty please, can you tell me where I am?

You…won't you say something?

I need to get my bearings…"

- Poe, "Haunted"

Notes to reviewers:

**Kitala – ***hug hug hug* My first and seemingly only reviewer, I bequeath to thee…um…a cookie, since I have no plushies.  Anyway, thank you so much for the nice review and enjoy the rest of the show!  (As well as the cookie.)

~*~

The shadowy figure watched from its vantage point atop a hill as its fellow vampire hunters charged the zombies.  He, the man in the cloak and the hat, with long dark hair, had seen these tactics once before.  He remembered – back during that incident so many years ago…the Markus Brothers were the last to successfully use that tactic without getting zombies inside their van.  The Markus Brothers…Leila…

"And of course that kid doesn't just look like ol' Leila.  We met her before, remember D?" piped a voice from the dhampire's left hand.  "Back at the funeral.  You made good on that promise to bring flowers, and it looks like Leila's grandkid hero-worshipped you enough to become a vampire hunter herself!"  A long pause ensued before it grumbled again, "Are you ignoring me again?  Don't tell me you forgot what happened the last time you ignored me…"

D was silent again for a long time, watching the chase, before answering the left hand.  "That girl didn't become a vampire hunter because of me."  His gaze remained riveted on the fight below.  The van managed to turn about seven of the zombies into road kill, while six more had been passed altogether and remained where they were due to temporary blindness.  The remaining seven of the twenty zombies were either chasing after the van or located on the van's sides or roof.

It was obviously not good odds at all; despite this, the next thing that could be seen was a window nearby a zombie opening up.  A red-haired girl carrying a bow moved to the window, loaded an arrow, aimed – ka-SHANK! – And there was one less zombie on the car, because now it was in the dust, clawing at the arrow lodged deeply into its stomach.  Her line of sight cleared, the girl leaned out of the window a bit to see what else she could fire at.  After locating a zombie, she reached over her shoulder again to get at the quiver of arrows, loaded another arrow, aimed, and fired.  This second, more far-off one didn't go over so well, because while it did get one of the zombies, it wasn't a good enough hit to make it stop chasing the car.  Undaunted, the girl continued to fire at the zombies while Leila's granddaughter was apparently breaking several speed limits in order to get away from the zombies.  (This was what D judged of the situation; he didn't know if it was true or not.)

The archer might have been a decent shot on other days, but she wasn't doing too well solo against all these zombies, and since Leila's granddaughter was busy at the wheel… Those two girls were in definite need of help.

Erika was currently having just the slightest amount of trouble driving.  She was completely in charge of the steering wheel, the ignition, the brake and the accelerator, so that wasn't the problem.  Nobody was trying to force her out of her seat, no rain made the road slippery.  No, what was causing her problems was that a zombie had grown attached to the windshield and showed no sign of letting go, even when prodded at with the windshield wipers.  She cursed several times, frantically attempting to dislodge it by making the van swivel from side to side.  In the back of her mind, she remembered that Rose would probably end up sick if she continued making the car do this, but right now it was the only choice – 

 - and Rose's panicked voice rang out, "There's someone on a horse, dead ahead!"  Erika's light aqua eyes widened and she cursed again before slamming on the brakes in a desperate attempt to avoid what Rose had spotted that she couldn't see at the moment.  Apparently, Rose had left the zombies behind the van alone in favor of making sure the van didn't crash.  Erika would have chuckled if she were at liberty to; Rose had always been like an older sister or mother figure to her, despite being a year or so younger than her.  She was so much more mature, and her eyes reflected it, making her look a little bit older than she truly was…

The tires screeched in protest, and the van halted abruptly before Erika could hear a telltale THUMP, which was a good thing.  As if to reward her avoiding making an innocent bystander road kill, the zombie split in half and fell off of the windshield, becoming a decoration of the car hood and allowing her to see the road again.  "Zombies don't split themselves," whispered Erika after she realized what had happened.  In fact, the zombie looked as if it had been sliced in half rather than split.  Now that her vision was cleared, she looked ahead to see what had sliced the zombie.  Grandma Leila had told her that the dhampire she had one traveled with used a sword as a weapon…and of course, that same person was the one who had been at the funeral.  Praying silently that it was who she thought it was, she looked around to see who had saved her van.

The van's savior stood a few feet away from the car, next to the possibly cybernetic horse he had been riding.  He wore a black outfit with boots of some kind (at least she assumed they were boots – surely they weren't high heels?!) as well as a black cloak and a wide-brimmed black hat.  In his right hand he held a dangerous-looking sword, and as if all the above weren't enough to tip her off Erika recognized his face.  It wasn't too difficult to do, seeing as the moon was a very good illuminator, especially at that angle…she could definitely recognize his face.  It was the legendary D, the dhampire that went against the vampire race, and the man who had brought flowers to her grandmother's funeral.  There could be no mistakes there – she would be able to know if it was him or not.

_Ka-SHANK!  Ka-SHANK!  Ka-SHANK!_  Arrows leisurely whistling through the air and apparently finding purchase in a few zombies' limbs (she sincerely hoped it was their ribcages instead of any other limbs) reminded Erika that not only had Rose returned to her attempts at attacking the zombies, but that she was – oh dear God** no** – going at it alone.  One hand on the blaster that was always holstered at her side, Erika opened the car door enough to look out and see a zombie lurching up to the van.  Erika's eyes narrowed before she pulled out the blaster, pointed it at the zombie, and – well, there was no zombie in the way anymore, because it was on the ground and hopefully dead.  

Now able to look further out, she opened the door a little wider and looked towards the back of the van.  Rose's pale, tired face looked right back at her, a small smile evident.  Clearly, she had managed to take out a few of the vampires lodged to the car or chasing them, but it had cost her a bit.  She looked about ready to collapse, but she wasn't going to unless given permission.  Erika had to hand it to her – she might have protested wildly when Erika made her become a vampire hunter, but Rose was loyal and tenacious.  If she were about to die, she'd probably hang on for a few more moments just to ask if there were anything else left for her to do before she could rest…it almost made Erika regret dragging her on the road of the vampire hunter, but she really hadn't had a choice back then.  Shaking herself out of her reverie, she checked to see if the pursuing zombies were still after them and sighed in relief when she found none.

Remembering her manners, she got out of the car and signaled for Rose to follow, and then walked over to D.  She made sure to keep a decent amount of space between them, fearing that her 'childhood hero' would think her rude if she did otherwise.  After hearing the light pitter-patter of her companion's footsteps as she walked over, she then looked at D.  A small grin crossed her face.  She waved her hand slightly, and said, "Hi, mister.  It's been a while, hasn't it?"  After getting no answer except for a nod, she continued shyly, "Um…I was just going to say, thanks for helping me an' Rose here…"

D nodded again and said softly, "It wasn't a problem."  He turned away, mounted his horse again, and rode off, leaving Erika with the van and her friend.  After a moment, she just smiled.  Leila had told her that D wasn't much for conversation, after all…and she really wouldn't have liked to deal with him if it were any other way than what her grandmother had said.

She turned back to Rose and almost grinned again at her 'sister's' dazed look.  "C'mon, sleepy girl.  Let's get back into the van.  You can take a nap on our way to the next town."

Author's Note: A long chapter indeed, and my first attempt at a fight scene.  Hopefully it didn't go over too badly.  No cliffhanger here, but that's because of a high probability of hell breaking loose in the next few chapters, so I decided to take a break from writing semi-cliffhangers for now.  Please read and review!


	4. Beginning to Wither

Dark Encore

Chapter Four: Beginning to Wither

"Dreamer, always alone

Lost in a part of myself that I can't find anymore

I wonder if it's gonna end tonight?"

- McAuley-Schenker Group, "Never Ending Nightmare"

Author's Note: Ladies, gentlemen, and Barbarois (and dhampires, etc.)  This is the first chapter in which at least a small portion of hell is going to break loose.  Beware traumatic memories, one archer who foolishly and wickedly attempted to drive on about 2 hours of sleep, and the brief appearance of a vampire in dire need of a psychiatrist or a good view of the sunrise.  (After what happened in Bloodlust, who can blame him?)

This is also a long chapter, but I felt that Meier did need to appear before the fifth chapter happened.

Notes to reviewers:

**Kitala - ** Thank you for the plushie!  Hopefully I'll be able to write more battle scenes, but I daresay I'm not too good at them…ah well.  Hope you enjoy the next chapter! ^_^

**Kelly10 – **My second reviewer!  *gives you a cookie also*  Thank you so much for reviewing also – especially for telling me that I managed to keep D and Lefty in character, that's what I was worried about the most.  Hope I keep living (er, writing) up to everyone's standards, and please enjoy the rest of the show!

~*~

_Slowly but surely, the realization dawned upon her that her 'sister' wasn't alone in the grassy meadow so late at night.  There was a vampire in front of her – a male, albeit not the 'typical' type.  He had straw-brown hair, and light amber eyes – certainly unlike the male vampires of yore, with either black or white hair and inhuman eyes, as well as more elaborate outfits.  He wore a plain farmer's outfit, complete with a straw hat and a lack of a cloak, and were it not for the pointed ears and the fact that he was so obviously not human, he would have been considered harmless.  But he wasn't.  He was a vampire, and he was going to kill Rose!_

_She watched in morbid fascination as one of the vampire's arms curled around Rose's shoulders, and the vampire bent his head so that he could bite at her neck –_

"AUGH!"  Erika sat up on the mattress that was placed across the van from Rose's little part of the traveling device/living space.  It was morning undoubtedly – a warm one, full of golden sunshine that illuminated the van and made her hair take on a bright hue – yet she had awoken in a very cold sweat.  It wasn't the first time she had done this, but she thought it had been over back when she made her choice!  She thought the memories would stop haunting her when she became a vampire hunter – well, she was undoubtedly wrong…the memory haunted her dreams once again.

Groaning slightly, she looked out of the window she was located near and, through a haze of sleepiness, realized that something was off.  She had parked the van last night on the edge of a road that was, to her recollection, nowhere near civilization.  The fact that it was now parked inside a town woke her up with great speed, all alarm bells at full blast.  Looking back at her 'room' and jumping out of bed, she hollered the only thing she could say at this moment: "Who the frakkin' hell messed with my van?!"

A quiet whimper of sleepiness notified Erika that Rose had somehow gotten to the front of the car, and sure enough – the crimson-haired girl stumbled to the back of the van and sat down on the edge of her own mattress.  Erika had to gawk then; was the person sitting across from her **really** her 'sister'?  The locks of curling red hair that somehow always managed to avoid being braided now looked mussed, and there was a look of extreme exhaustion in Rose's hazel eyes.  Her skin was slightly paler than usual, accenting the bags around her eyes…and it lead Erika to only one conclusion. "Rose, why did you take over driving the van when I went to sleep?  Why were you up so late anyway?"

Rose looked up at Erika and smiled softly.  "I…couldn't sleep.  I had a nightmare, and I couldn't sleep."  Erika raised one golden eyebrow at the girl's simplicity and waved one hand in a 'please continue' gesture.  Rose looked down at the ground, silent for a moment.  Then she said, "Really, that's all there was to it.  I had a nightmare and couldn't sleep, and since you're always saying time is money in the vampire hunting business, I thought I might as well be useful.  That and I didn't have anything else to do – so unlike back at the village, do you remember?"

Erika rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to lightly slap Rose on the side of the face.  The girl was out of place in the vampire hunting business, it was true.  She was too kind and too fragile to ever really be good at the job, mused Erika silently, but it wasn't like she had been given much of a choice or rather – it wasn't as if Erika had given her any choice.  And speaking of fragility – Rose never had nightmares before; perhaps the job was hurting her mind, realized the blonde girl.  Walking a few steps over to where Rose sat, she placed one hand on a white-clad shoulder, looked into hazel eyes and asked, "Rose, is it because of what happened last night?  Why don't you tell me what's going on, hmm?"

A hesitation, and then Rose whispered, "It wasn't because of last night, I don't think…in fact, it's been going on ever since we took the case.  And the nightmare…I'm in a dark room, but there are specks of light all over the place; I don't know if it's a room or the night sky really.  The lights are…like a barrier; they're not letting me find out what's going on anywhere else.  And I always get the feeling that if I ever figure out what's beyond the lights, I'll die."  She looked away from Erika's eyes, finding the mattress sheets interesting for a moment.  In a softer, more frightened tone, she continued, "Last night I decided to take a step forward…it scared me so badly that I woke up!  That's all there is to it!"  Erika knew immediately that this was one of Rose's sad excuses for lies, and when that happened, there was usually no way to get the information out of Rose at all.

Shrugging slightly, Erika decided to drop the issue for now.  She would probably try to get Rose to talk if it happened again, but for now, in the safe light of the sun… "All right, I'm not asking any more questions for today, Rose.  C'mon, we've got a van to maintain, supplies to stock up on, and stuff like that."  She turned away from Rose to head towards the front of the van – and then stopped.  Curiously, she looked back to see if Rose was coming with.  Rose had a slightly dazed look on her face, and Erika immediately realized that Rose wasn't going anywhere unless someone dragged her.  She walked back, grabbed Rose's hand, and dragged her towards the front of the car.  "Let's go already, you lazy kid!"

Later that night, the two were back on the road.  It had taken until after sunset for them to restock supplies and take care of all the sundry troubles of having a van as a residence, the least of which was making sure the van didn't run out of gas.

Truth be told, Erika didn't particularly like driving at night, and not only because she couldn't see overly well in the dark unless the moon cast a good deal of light (much unlike Rose, who had an uncanny ability to see things during a waning moon.  Well, it was uncanny to her anyway, but perhaps it really wasn't so unusual…)  No, it wasn't just because of that, it was also because everything dangerous comes out after dark, and vampires did fall under the category 'everything dangerous.'  So did ghosts, and demons, and…She just didn't like the night.  The night was beautiful; no doubt about it, but it was dangerous too.  Erika wouldn't let herself like the night until it was finally safe – until the vampires were all gone…

"There's a hitchhiker dead ahead," murmured Rose softly. She was sitting down on her mattress, her head out of the window so that she could see what Erika could not notice at night.  "Pale hair, pale skin, dark clothes that look like they belong to an aristocrat – Erika, please go past him."  Her voice had unwittingly risen in what appeared to be agitation, and that alone made Erika slam on the brakes from shock.  Rose, sweet little harmless Rose, worried about something?  If Rose was worried, it meant something was probably wrong on a grander scale than she had thought.  Then her mind reeled at the description of the hitchhiker.  She silently compared it with the description of the vampire a terrified town mayor had given her… 

_Pale hair, pale skin, dark aristocrat's clothes…_

_"He has hair like snow and the pale skin of any vampire, as well as eyes like blood.  He wears the garb of some kind of noble, and most of it is dark!"_

"Rose, I'd give you a hug if we weren't about to go out for a confrontation.  I think we've found our quarry."  Erika's voice quickly adopted an emotionless, businesslike tone.  "Get out of the van.  We're going to go have a chat with Meier Link."  Erika got up from the seat, cast one last look at the hitchhiker, turned away from the window, and started towards the door.  She nearly managed to get there before a pair of arms curled around her shoulders and she could feel a small, restraining weight against her back.  She looked over her shoulder to see Rose's worried, frightened face looking back at her.  "Rose…?"

"Please don't go out there…we can just leave.  We don't need to get this one; we can go and get another quarry.  We don't need to…"  Erika took a closer look at what little of Rose's face she could see and her jaw nearly dropped from shock.  Rose was seriously worried about the fight that was to come, and yet…and yet.  Erika shook her head, looked away from Rose, and very gently pried her off her back.

She turned around for a moment to regard the girl.  "We've earned quite the reputation in the last few years, you and I.  We're two of the best vampire hunters still living, and if we lose that reputation, it'll be like leaving the business forever.  I won't do that, and I don't think you're going to either.  I don't want to, and you really don't have a choice.  Neither of us can go back to living until every last vampire in the world is gone – now like I said, let's get going."  She grabbed Rose's wrist, turned away from her, and marched down the steps.  Despite Rose's protests, she had no choice but to follow Erika outside.

Slowly, deliberately, Erika walked over to the person, making sure to keep a good distance between them.  She cleared her throat as if to get his attention before saying, "Howdy, stranger.  I'm Erika, a vampire hunter, this here's my friend Rose, and we're after a vampire named Meier Link.  From what I hear, he looks just like you.  Mind tellin' me if you know anything about him?"

The stranger looked at her, calm disregard in his red – _blood-red_ – eyes as it registered that he was not alone.  Then, in a voice that bespoke a very high possibility of being born into the nobility, the stranger answered, "I am Meier Link…ah yes, you two are probably those vampire hunters contracted by that foolish mayor I nearly killed?  Greetings."

One of Erika's eyebrows began to twitch halfway into Meier's greeting.  This was seriously not what she had expected…she had thought he would be something more like the vampire gone mad that the rumors had spoken of; that is to say, she thought he wouldn't be so…polite.  _What the hell was going on here?!_

Author's Note: Again, I hope I didn't make Meier too out of character…please read and review!


	5. Shadows and Specters

Dark Encore

Chapter Five: Shadows and Specters

"But where will you go

With no one left to save you from yourself

You can't escape

You can't escape…"

- Evanescence, "Where Will You Go"

Author's Note: This chapter was actually a real nightmare to get uploaded, as the document holding it and a bunch of other stuff decided to scare me half to death by disappearing.  Luckily for me, there was aid readily available, and the document was recovered with relative ease.  I hope this doesn't happen again in the future, my poor heart can't take much more of this!

Notes to reviewers:

**Embient** – My third reviewer!  Ah, so many thanks to thee… Worry not, for answers will be on their way.  Maybe not this chapter, but they WILL be on their way.  But first, there must be more questions put into place before the end arrives, and at least one more entity must make its appearance.

**Kitala** – Good to see that you like this story so much! ^_^ I hope this chapter continues to live up to everyone's expectations, including yours.  (Especially since you were responsible for giving me that plushie…)

~*~

"You're Meier Link, are you?  I don't believe it."

A breeze whistled its seemingly lonely way by after Erika made that statement.  Whether she didn't believe him or whether she was trying to irritate him was unknown; despite her words, though, one hand went to her blaster and she shifted her weight uneasily.  Whatever his identity was, she didn't trust him to just stand there and not attack for a while longer.  She knew he was dangerous.

Meier Link smiled his cold smirk again before replying, "You don't believe me, eh?"  Something in his tone of voice – A split second after he said that, Erika realized there was something he had deliberately left unspoken, and that she knew exactly what it was.  She could hear it in her mind… 'Then I will make you believe.'

A split-second was all the time the legend needed to attack with an accursed dark blade.  She noted that, curiously enough, the blade seemed to be part of that cloak of his…perhaps it had something to do with manipulation of matter?  She couldn't tell and – as the blade swung towards her – she realized she probably wouldn't ever be able to find out…

In that lethal moment, a dark shape swirled in front of her, blocking the blow with a blade of its own.  Erika looked up, up, up in the hopes of finding out who it was.  The wide-brimmed, dark hat and swirling brown-black hair told her immediately who it was.  D had saved her life, without a doubt, for the second time in a row!  Shaking herself out of the shock, she took a few steps away from D and then a few more so that she could take stock of the situation.  Most likely, D had been following them for some time now – why she did not know; either that, or it had been a mere coincidence…no, it could be no coincidence.  What was it that Leila had said once?  _'There's no such thing as coincidence, my dear, there's only destiny, whether you think so or not.'  _No wonder that the old woman would say that; after what had happened to her, she had become quite the believer in destiny.

Right now, Erika was quite near thinking that Grandma Leila had been on to something there, when she had said that.  If D hadn't been there, she would have died, and if she had died right then and there, she wouldn't have been able to carry out what she considered her mission…and Rose would be in even more danger than she was already.  Rose!  Just remembering the sister she hadn't been born with made her recall that Rose had followed her out of the van…and was probably right behind her…"Ah, crap."  Addressing the battling people as if they could hear her, she said, "Beggin' your pardon, but I need to get a friend of mine out of danger."  Obligatory politeness executed, she turned around to Rose. "Now, Rose…"

Her voice trailed off and her eyes widened at what had happened.  Rose's eyes had taken on a strange light golden tint and seemed to be incapable of reflecting the moon or anything else.  Her hair had somehow gotten free of its braid and fell past her shoulders – it might have been a few inches away from elbow length by now, she hadn't been checking – in all its curling red glory.  This could probably be on account of all the wind, but what was with her eyes?  They were different now, and not just because they had lost all ability to reflect the light.  Erika was stunned; was Rose victim of a split personality or something? "Rose?  Hello?  Is anyone there, Rose?"  She had to raise her voice over the sound of the combat – apparently D and Meier were evenly matched; not too much of a shock really.

She could care less about that at the moment…

The hazel-eyed girl looked at her carefully before whispering in an ethereal, ghostly voice, "My favorite flowers…"  A tear slipped down the strange girl's face and it suddenly hit Erika that whoever was speaking, whoever owned those golden eyes, had an insanely heavy burden upon her back and that reminding her of anything that could cause pain would do no good.  Hesitantly, Erika reached out to give her a hug, but a pair of paler hands stayed her own.  One of them released one of her hands and then gently placed itself against the side of her face.  Meeting the light gaze, Erika nearly started when she saw a faraway, sad look there.  Then the girl spoke again.  "No, don't.  Don't be upset, dear companion.  I chose this long ago."

Back at the fight, Erika's assumption was quickly becoming true.  No matter how many times each tried to throw the other off balance or somehow defeat them, D and Meier were unable to do so.  Quite frankly, D was getting annoyed, and so was Meier, and both undoubtedly for the same reason – why was it so blasted impossible to finish the fight at long last?!  Meier nearly snarled as he swiped again and was blocked again.  While D was not nearly so prone to displays of anger, it was obvious that he too was irked by this inability to either defeat or be defeated.

With the battle clearly at a stalemate, Meier decided to opt for conversation while parrying swipes and attacking in his own turn.  "You seem to be doing rather well these days, dhampire."

A long pause in which there were several metallic, loud CLANG-ing noises that could only have been produced by blades striking each other.  "For someone who is rumored to have gone insane, you seem to be doing well also."  There was an unspoken question there – _Are the rumors really true, or did you somehow remain sane after what happened?_

The unspoken question got a spoken answer, "So humans call grief 'madness' these days, do they?"  Another clash of blades, and Meier was in the dhampire's face, glaring at him darkly.  "You understand **nothing**…"

"I chose this long ago."  For some odd reason, a strange voice could be heard over the din of their battle and resultant chat, and both looked away for a moment to see what was going on – not good to turn a back on potential enemies for long, after all.  The potential enemies in question were looking rather harmless – the blonde girl was currently carrying the red-haired, apparently quite unconscious one to the van parked nearby, which was obviously theirs, as neither one of the descendants of the night would go around in a van while in their right mind.  

And despite all rumors, Meier Link was clearly in his right mind – for the most part, anyway; he probably had at least one screw loose, and Left Hand would probably yap about it if nobody else were around.

D looked back at his opponent only to see that, for reasons unknown, Meier Link had withdrawn from the battle.  It took a moment for D to figure out exactly what was going on.  "He's playing a game…"  Then he considered what Meier had said during their fight – 'So humans call grief 'madness'…'  He quickly came to one possible conclusion, which was: "…and he might be trying to lose."

After this brilliant conclusion, D once again disappeared into the night…


	6. Calm Before the Storm

Dark Encore

Chapter Six: Calm Before The Storm

"Don't cry, there's always a way

Here in November in this house of leaves

We'll pray

Please, I know it's hard to believe

To see a perfect forest

Through so many splintered trees…"

 -Poe, "Haunted"

Author's Note: Ack!  Sorry for the major delay – ran into major computer trouble during this week.  It's still not fixed completely, but the screen's not being weird anymore, and that's enough for me.

Notes to Reviewers:

**tina** – Your questions about what's going to happen will be answered…just not right now, heheh.  And I'm working on this as fast as I can!  It's not my fault if I can't churn out a chapter a day, really.

**Kelly10 – **You might be right, and then again, you may just be leaping to conclusions under the influence of a sugar rush.  That's all I'm saying, dearie.

**Kitala -  **Glad to know I was able to surprise someone, and I hope that the (distant) conclusion is as good as you think it will be!

Apologies for the poor attempt at writing down a Southern accent somewhere in this chapter, but I couldn't help it – I've heard the accent a lot of times, I needed to have a character that spoke it…but I digress…

~*~

Another day of vampire hunting well done – such were usually Erika's thoughts in the early evening.  This evening, however, was a very different evening.  Erika could sense it in the air – it crackled and hissed instead of flowing silently as it usually did throughout the parked van.  Shortly after their run-in with D and Meier, the two had continued driving.  They really had no clue where they were driving, and D had apparently gotten ahead of them while they rested.  This was not a problem, except that it was damn impossible to follow the dhampire.  Therefore, they had no guide, and no towns were nearby either.   To put it simply, they were lost.  Erika had given up shortly after dawn and decided to continue their journey in the wild forest when the night fell.  For the record, this wasn't the first time she had been nocturnal whilst on her journey to eradicate all vampires.  She had done this many times before.

But as has been noted, this was quite the different night.  Erika was pacing back and forth in the front of the van, a few feet away from and perpendicular to where Rose sat on her mattress.  The red-haired girl looked down at the ground, her hair cascading over her shoulders without the restraint of a hair tie.  Yes – Rose hadn't bothered to re-braid her hair since last night, and not only that, she hadn't bothered to replace her vest after removing it to take a good day's nap.  (Contrary to any misguided beliefs, sleeping in a chainmail vest is one of the most uncomfortable things one can do.  Rose had foolishly tried it once and sworn never to do it again if she could help it.)

"Rose, what happened last night?  You don't seem to be doing too well, what with last night and all…what happened?  Why won't you tell me?" Erika's voice was a good deal softer than usual, full of worry and weariness.  She paused in her pacing to look over at Rose, who met her aqua gaze with her own light hazel one silently.  "You're acting strangely…and that trance – why did it happen?"

Rose blinked back innocently, eyes full of confusion.  "What do you mean, a trance?  I don't remember being under any trance…I must have fallen asleep, because after D appeared and fought Meier, the next thing I remember is waking up here!"  Rose's quiet voice was full of vehemence, although it didn't grow very loud – the girl seemed incapable of shouting, which was fine with Erika.

A snort, and Erika looked away from her for a moment.  "Damn, Rose.  You really were out of it.  Look, there's gotta be some reason behind this.  Maybe it's an aftereffect of not sleeping enough, or something…"  Her voice trailed off as a quiet knock was heard at their door.  Puzzled, she asked, "Now who on earth would be out in the wilderness so late? – We'll be discussing this as soon as I'm done dealing with the visitor, okay?"  Not waiting for Rose's answer, Erika walked over to the van door and opened it.  At the door was a farmer, his hat tipped so as to shade his face, and his hands covered by a pair of plain cloth gloves.  He chewed on a grass stalk, and it was evident that he was probably grinning at them.  Erika relaxed, realizing that this was most likely a local, and said, "Uh, howdy, stranger.  What brings you out here so late?"

The farmer stuck his hands inside his jean pockets, chewed thoughtfully at the stalk for another second, before saying in a heavily accented voice, "Howdy, ma'am.  Ah heard y'all're hunters, possibly after that albino vamp, am Ah right?"  At Erika's confused nod, it was evident – even without seeing his face – that there was a really wide grin on the farmer's face.  "Wonderful, jus' wonderful.  Ah'm here just in time ta help y'all, it seems.  A buncha m' friends and Ah were wanderin' round these parts a while back and happened upon a route to a castle, and everyone round here thinks it's the home a' that vampire.  Takes only a day or so to get there – ya interested?"

Erika nodded, and quickly a bargain was struck.  The farmer gave Erika the directions in exchange for – "An arrow?  You want an arrow in exchange?  Sure," said the blonde after the directions were given and she had a chance to record them.  Erika headed to the back, got an arrow from the abandoned quiver, and brought it back to the farmer.  "And good luck to you.  Thanks, stranger!"  With that, Erika closed the van door and headed to the driver's seat.  

As the van rode off, the farmer looked up enough for the moon to highlight his unusually pale face, his vaguely pointed ears, and his amber eyes.  "Thanks kindly for the blessin', ma'am.  May the same hold true for you, your friend, and for that kid Meier.  Ah don't want things to go bad again, after all…"  The vampire's words echoed on the wind even after he had disappeared, echoing for a while until they too disappeared on the wind…

"I do not understand what you are doing, Mnemosyne."

These were Meier's first words to the vampire nicknamed after the Greek Titaness ruling over memory, right after said vampire strolled into his castle's main hall.  In the race of vampires this one looked out of place, to be sure; he wore the garb of a plain farmer, a habit of his that he had kept up ever since his siring many centuries ago, and here he was in the midst of a truly majestic, imposing castle dark as night – save for the windows, and the gray tiled floor.

Mnemosyne just grinned at Meier.  "Aw, you mean the fact that Ah tried to help you an' little Charlotte a while back, and now Ah'm off doing my own thing while still claiming to be working with you, and what Ah'm doing seems to be chaotic an' dangerous ta both me an' yourself?  Ya forgot Rule 1 of dealin' with elder vampires, darlin', and that's never to question us."  At the end of this sentence, Mnemosyne's light tenor voice was suddenly foreboding, and his eyes had narrowed dangerously.

Yes indeed, Mnemosyne was older than Meier by a great deal. Popular rumor said that he was older than even the Bloody Countess, Carmilla. Despite this, he both looked and acted a good deal younger and more human than the noble.  He was also quite a lot shorter than Meier, which wasn't very useful, nor did it make him seem respectable.  It did not change the facts though – Meier had accidentally irritated a vampire who legends claimed could see all that had happened in the past and who had some slight ability to manipulate the time stream for his own purposes.  Angering Mnemosyne was a job for those who wished to die, or who wished to be reminded of the most traumatic events in their life.

Strangely enough, Mnemosyne just laughed long and loud, doubling over and slapping his knee in an expression of high amusement, rather than attacking.  When he managed to regain his dignity, he grinned at Meier.  "Ahhh, you think that's gonna get me mad enough to send you after Char, don't ya?  That's how you're thinkin'  - trust me, Ah know, runt.  Ah know…"  His voice suddenly turned sympathetic, and the grin disappeared.  "Ah've been around for much longer than you have, Meier, an' you know it.  Longer than even that hag the Bloody Countess – by tha way, Ah do apologize for not having been able to get there in time to help, but Ah was detained by the Barbarois, and ya know not even I can beat 'em when it's about a hundred 'gainst one.  Ah ain't as strong as you or our king anyway, thanks to my damn gift – it's useful, but it leaves me damn near useless in a fight.  Not that that's much of an excuse, but now you know why Ah wasn't able to help, much as Ah wanted to help."

Meier waved his hand in the air briefly, as if to brush off Mnemosyne's apology.  "The past is the past…not only that, but I distinctly remember you warning me not to go to the Castle Chaythe for help.  If only I had listened to you then…"

A grin tugged at Mnemosyne's lips again.  "Now, now, Meier.  It warn't nobody's fault.  Y'all did what you thought was best; 'sides, even my advice can turn useless every now and then."  A sigh escaped him then and he looked as if he had a burden on his back.  He turned away to look out the window, rocking back and forth on his feet in a sign of thoughtfulness.  "Meier…if there was a chance to remedy the situation – would ya take that chance, knowin' what happened the last time ya took a chance?"

Meier's crimson eyes narrowed.  "Explain yourself, Vampire of Memory," he growled threateningly, addressing Mnemosyne by his title in an angered manner.  Meier was somewhere between just looking imposing and turning his hands to steel claws and ripping the offending vampire's intestines out, which was never a good thing.

Mnemosyne looked over his shoulder, tipping his wide straw hat as he did.  "Ah said what Ah meant, Meier…and ya'll have to forgive me, but Ah ain't tellin' ya yet, runt.  It might actually work out better that way, and it's much more fun for me that way."  A big grin crossed what Meier could see of the vampire's face, causing the white-haired one to snarl angrily.  "Now don'cha look upset like that, Meier.  Instead, prepare yourself – for the greatest game of all yer life and un-life is about to begin!"  And with that he turned around, bowed mockingly to Meier, and with a quick blurring of his image he disappeared.

Meier nearly cursed in anger.  "Vampire of Memory, what are you up to now?!"

Author's Note: In case you didn't catch that, Mnemosyne is none other than the vampire that nearly killed Rose four years ago, AND he just directed Erika to the castle for some odd reason.  Please review!


	7. Past the Point of No Return

Dark Encore

Chapter Seven: Past the Point of No Return

"You think that I can't see right through your eyes?

Scared to death to face reality…

No one seems to hear your hidden cries

You're left to face yourself alone

But where will you go with no one left to save you from yourself?

You can't escape the truth

I realize you're afraid, but you can't abandon everyone

You can't escape, you don't want to escape…"

- Evanescence, "Where Will You Go"

Author's Note: I hope this chapter is as much fun for you all to read as it was for me to write, is all I'm saying. ^_~

Notes to reviewers:

**Kelly10 – **Thanks for the notes there, reviewer dear.  One, Erika is about as stubborn as Leila was.  **No** amount of her grandmother (may she rest in peace) warning her about castles is gonna keep her away from this.  Two, that's "don't listen to elders who have been killed by the Vampire King."  Mnemosyne, unlike Carmilla, is not immobilized by way of a blade through the chest. Three, I know that the time-stream manipulation dealie can be a killer to write, but Mnemmie-chan can't really manipulate it.  He can just see it – can't change it – but he can use what he sees to help people in the present; does that make any sense? 

**Kitala – **Wonder all you like, but I'm not spoiling it here.  Nope.

**tina – **Glad to see you like this, dearie. ^_^

~*~

The second night of traveling found Erika and Rose on their way to a small town – the last one they would see before hitting the bridge that, about two hours from the moment they would go onto said bridge, would take them straight to a castle that could be seen looming in the distance, casting its dark shadow over the town.  It was ominous, this castle, and yet Erika couldn't help but take it as a good sign.  For this castle was, without a doubt, the home of Meier Link.

The happy fact that their quest seemed to nearly be over was dampened slightly by a little problem… "Rose, why haven't you prepared yourself for what's up ahead?  Your hair's not out of the way, your armor's not back on, and you're not carrying your weapons!" growled Erika from where she sat at the driver's seat.  The van had slowed to a crawl in order for its inhabitants to savor the last few moments before hitting the town that would lead to the bridge.

Erika's accusation was correct; her companion had indeed forgotten to prepare.  Rose's hair cascaded over her shoulders, kept free of most tangles thankfully, but not in the braid it was accustomed to.  Her chainmail vest lay at the foot of her mattress, forgotten and allowing Rose to breathe more freely than she had in a few years.  To complete this, her bow and quiver rested on the floor next to her mattress, never to be used again if Rose could help it.  The fact that Rose no longer wanted to use her weapons or even defend herself – now, of all times, when they were so close to the bounty of a lifetime – was driving Erika up the wall with irritation and confusion.  "Why are you doing this?!"

Rose looked straight at Erika as she considered what to say next.  Then, "Because I'm tired of fighting.  I've never really liked arrows, the vest is far too heavy, and besides, I get the feeling I'm not going to be a part of this fight.  I'm _not_ a part of it, not anymore."

Erika could only stand there and gawk.  Slowly it dawned on her that this trip, for some reason, had affected Rose's mind somehow.  Perhaps she had been driven insane, perhaps it was something else…all she knew was that her friend was now different from the shy, smiling girl who had nearly been bitten by a vampire.  "Rose, you are a part of this fight.  I need your help.  I can't do this alone, do you hear me?  I know I won't be able to fight anyone alone.  The only reason I was able to deal with this was because my 'sister' was here with me, always smiling and helping me out despite the fact that I was a little mean at times.  Why do you want to leave now, of all times, when I need your help the most?"

The red-haired girl didn't answer for a second, choosing instead to go over to a window and look out it.  The light of the near-full moon made her skin look almost silver and her hair seemed to shimmer with an equally off-silver aura about it.  She looked the very image of harmlessness in her pale tunic, although the dark pants and boots spoiled the effect.  For some reason, Erika felt that the plain dresses she wore back at the village were more appropriate… Then Rose turned enough that Erika could see part of her face.  The blonde nearly gasped – Rose was _crying?!_  "Rose, please don't cry!  What's the matter?  What's going on?"

Very slowly, Rose shook her head.  "You're not the only one who doesn't get it…_but it's already too late for you to try to save me_.  It's not that I **want** to be saved by anyone, either… My destiny, my path was set when I made a choice long ago.  Please forgive me for my deceit, Erika…"

That morning, D could be found inside the village leading to the bridge (appropriately known as Bridgetown.)    His reason for not having already gone into the castle was not because of the heat syndrome that Left Hand complained about so often, nor was it for reasons of restocking supplies.  No, it was because his horse needed repairs and Left Hand had nearly yapped itself off when D considered going on without the horse's aid in the blazing heat of the day.  Left Hand could be truly annoying if it felt so inclined, and D had not felt in the mood for a migraine brought on by the thing talking nonstop.  Therefore, D was still in the village, waiting for horse maintenance to be completed.

Since none of the villagers felt like being around someone who rather insanely wore black on a hot day, Left Hand took the opportunity to try and start up a conversation.  "Hm hm, so we're about to go face off against that albino again, eh?  Heheh…if you ask me, I get the feeling something's not right here.  Don't take my word for it of course," it added hastily, "but if you remember what happened the last time you didn't listen to me…  You listening?  D?  D?  Dammit…"

Under his breath, his lips barely moving so that none of the villagers would think him mad, D replied, "I'm listening.  What choice do I have?"

"Heh heh, well that's good to hear.  For a moment I was afraid you'd slice me off!  But you wouldn't do that, now would you D?  No, no…that's not how you work."  Left Hand's voice took on a more serious tone then as it continued, "What I'm trying to say is, it's bad enough that Meier's back.  He should have stayed in the stars mourning, but he decided to come back.  Why?  I don't know, maybe there's something he wants from us.  Maybe he wants revenge on the world that wouldn't let him and Charlotte be happy.  Point is, as if him being back weren't bad enough, Leila's own granddaughter decided to get involved in the fray!  Then there's that rumor about one of those really weird vampires getting involved in all this…You've heard of the one they say has gotten involved in all this.  He's able to see everything that ever happened – can't change it though, but he can get a lot of information from it and use it to his advantage.  He's the world's memory incarnate, or so they say.  He hasn't been seen for years, but whenever he is seen or heard of, something really big happens."

D nodded silently, giving Left Hand all the go-ahead it needed to continue with its yapping.  "Yeah – point is, if the rumors are true, we're dealing with something just as big as the last time we went up against Meier, maybe even worse if this other vampire's as bad as I think he is…what the hell is that?!"  Left Hand's confused question was directed at a nigh-ruined van that was speedily clunking and clattering its way into the town – thankfully it wasn't from the direction of the bridge.  A good deal of the van's left side seemed to have been ripped out, one of the headlights was a goner, and the windows all around the van – as well as the windshield – had seemingly been blasted to pieces.  Confused, Left Hand said, "I think that's that girl's van…but what happened to it?"

The hand proceeded to shut up as the ruined van screeched to a halt and one of the doors slammed itself open.  As if in answer to Left Hand's question, Erika staggered out of the van, looking very much like she had seen hell.  Her red coat looked as if it had nearly been sliced to pieces, and there were a few wounds on her face.  Upon noticing D, she managed to stand up straight and ran over to him.  "D!  Thank God I found you!"

D looked impassively down at the girl (she wasn't a girl really, more of a young lady in her early 20s; to D however she was still a young girl,) silently judging what had possibly happened.  Finally, he said in his emotionless way, "You got ambushed by a vampire."  He wasn't asking a question, he was making a statement that in all likelihood was the truth.  

Erika nodded, the worried and perhaps even stunned look never once leaving her face.  "Yeah!  While I was driving last night, a vampire decided to mess with my van!  I…it was awful."  Taking a deep breath, she managed to calm herself.  "I didn't even think the van was going to last into this village…damn, but I'm gonna have to get a new means of transportation…"  Her voice trailed off as she saw D looking at the car.  "What?  What do you see?"

"Where's that friend of yours?"  D's question was quiet, emotionless as he surveyed the van.  He distinctly remembered there being another girl with Leila's granddaughter…a very odd one, very out of place for the duty of vampire hunting, but she had managed to spear a few zombies while in a moving vehicle, and that alone made her worthy of consideration.  The dhampire looked at the blonde hunter, recognizing immediately the way her face fell in sorrow and the light in her eyes disappeared.  "The vampire…"

"Yeah.  Yeah, that's exactly what happened."  Erika was well able to understand what D implied by just mentioning the vampire; she had dealt with Grandma Leila long enough to be able to read people to an extent.  She wasn't very good at it, but it helped whenever people chose not to complete their sentences for some reason or another.  "Four years ago, a vampire tried to kill Rose.  I chased him off – should have killed him when I had the chance, though.  He's the same one that ambushed us and made my van get so badly messed up just last night, and…"  She hesitated before saying the next sentence.

"He's the same one that messed with my van and abducted Rose right before my eyes."


	8. Discussions and Arrivals

Dark Encore

Chapter Eight: Discussions and Arrivals

"All I ever wanted and more

My dreams are fighting for

Never ending nightmare

Always there instead of you

Never ending nightmare

Punishing me for the things I do

Never ending nightmare

No escape this time from you…"

 - McAuley-Schenker Group, "Never Ending Nightmare"

Notes to reviewers:

**tina – **So I take it that my little attempt at a 'demon cliffhanger' worked, ay? ^_^ Excellent. *twiddles fingers in a vaguely Mr. Burns-esque manner*

**Kitala – **Thank you, and thank you again, o loyal reviewer.  I'd take my hat off to thee, except that I have no hat…drat.  Instead I hand over more cookies. *does so*

**Lucinda – **Second chapter in a row that I've been asked all the long questions! …And none of them will be answered, except that Erika could be mistaken for Leila easily; they've got the same build by now – that make sense?  Oh, and the only other question I'm gonna answer is that yes, D and Erika are going to go work together.  (No romance between those two though; D would just not be D if he was paired up, would he?)

Notes to everyone:  Guess what you will about the characters' fates, but I'm not going to declare it true or false here.  You'll have to find it out as the story goes on; I refuse to speak a spoiler.  Whatever will be said, will be said in the chapter itself.  Get it?  Good. ^_^  Onward!

~*~

Before the discussion could continue, however, Erika needed to make arrangements on the topic of transportation.  Her van was past the point of no return and definitely past the point of being repairable.  It was an ex-van, to put it simply, which left Erika stranded unless she found another means of transportation.  Fortunately for her, the van could still be sold for its various usable parts, which included and were not limited to one functioning door, one steering wheel, and four functional tires.  When the total came out and she took a look around town, she realized that she wouldn't be able to buy another van for a while.  In fact, the only thing available to her was a horse – a cybernetic one like D's, fresh out of repairs as well, but a horse nonetheless, and one that could get her to the castle and back.

She took the offer, but not without musing to herself about the change.  For so long she had been living in the van like it was a home, with another person.  The van and its other inhabitant had become her home – and now both were gone.  From the looks of it, not even the funds from defeating Meier would cover another van…Leila's words rang through her mind then: _There's no such thing as coincidence… _

If it weren't coincidence, she realized as her heart nearly stopped from the shock, then that meant she would be going back home alone.  If it weren't coincidence, it meant – Well, she wasn't going to think about what it meant.

That evening, D and Erika rode their horses to the bridge and stopped for a moment.  They were both in hearing range of each other; sensing her cue, Erika explained what had happened.  "…and right after she told me that, the van nearly flopped onto its side and all the interior lighting went out.  Then the windows shattered, and Rose was knocked out.  That vampire from four years ago leaped in and got ahold of Rose – when I tried to stop him, he hit me upside and I was knocked out.  When I woke up, the lights were back on, it was morning, and Rose was gone."  A pause.  "I'm sorry for making you listen to all this…"

"It's all right."  There was a pause as slowly, slowly, the horses began moving again and trotted their way onto the bridge.  There was silence for a while, until finally D said, "The castle ahead is the only vampire hideout in this area, if your friend has been taken anywhere, it's here."

"Yeah, that's what I was afraid of," agreed Erika.  She looked across the bridge to the foreboding castle looming in the distance, then back at D.  A slight smirk crossed her face then.  "Guess we'd better get going.  Two hours is a long time, maybe even too long."  With that, Erika turned her attention once again to the goal at hand and rode forward, urging her horse into a full gallop.  A second later, she heard the sound of a horse's gallop next to her – perhaps even passing her – she could see D in front of her, but that wasn't a bad thing really.  At least she knew where he was…

In the castle, meanwhile, a good deal of confusion had broken loose.  Meier had noticed Mnemosyne's arrival late last night and, after allowing both himself and the elder a good day's rest, had flown down several rounds of stairs and across one hallway to Mnemosyne's room to find out what he wanted.  When he landed, he nearly gave a start at the realization that the elder was carrying something – someone – in his arms, almost as if the person were a child in his care.  "Why have you brought a human here?"

"Ah'll have you know it took a good deal just to get her outta that blonde mother hen's care!" piped Mnemosyne.  A catlike grin was on his face as he said this, a grin that looked eerie on a face forever slightly shaded by a straw hat.  "Ah do like a good challenge every now n' then, an' this time it was really worth it."  He indicated the unconscious figure in his arms by shrugging his shoulders slightly.  "Ah did what Ah was planning ta do.  Whether that coincides with yer plans means not a damn thing ta me."

Meier almost rolled his eyes at this.  Mnemosyne had seemingly abducted the figure in his arms and covered it in a dark green cloak to keep it from being recognized. The white-haired vampire highly suspected that the person in question was female, as this was how most vampires nowadays went about and – curses, now he was remembering his own little venture into the world of abducting humans…  He was probably looking rather withdrawn and upset, because Mnemosyne let out another one of his long, loud laughs.  "Really now, Meier, Ah didn't do this just ta torture ya.  In fact," now Mnemosyne was sounding deliberately mysterious; this was never a good sign in Meier's book, "Ah'm doing this for exactly the opposite reason.  Not that you'll understand me, but all Ah can hope for is that you figure it out before it's too damn late."

Meier sighed softly, then glared at the elder.  "You often say that questioning one of such age as yourself is something that should not be done, but I question you anyway…"  His curiosity, much as he hated to think otherwise, was greatly piqued by Mnemosyne's actions, so rather than continue into one of those tirades of questions that had become commonplace since the first time he met the elder, he asked softly, "Who is that person, and why did you bring them here?"

The grin on Mnemosyne's face became more pronounced as gently, almost tenderly he moved the cloak around a bit, eventually finding an edge of it and removing it from over the girl's (so it was a girl!) face.  One of Meier's eyebrows went up at this.  The girl was beautiful, no doubts of it, with long red hair, light skin that hadn't seen the sun too often, and a face that seemed to be the work of some sculptor.  Come to think of it, her face…there was a vague resemblance to Charlotte!  If Meier's heart were still beating, it would have stopped at this realization.  There was one thing slightly off with that picture, though – ah yes.  The way she was held, the left side of her neck was exposed, and for that matter so was the mark there… "You say you do not lie, but here you have this girl that looks like my dear Charlotte and from the looks of it you've bitten her.  You say you're not here to harm?  I don't believe this."

Mnemosyne shook his head softly.  "Uh-uh.  That mark there, that's a birthmark.  Looks awful like a vampire bite though, don't it?  If Ah didn't know better, Ah'd say it was just a coincidence…and there's gonna be explanations, don't worry. Ya're gonna rip my lungs out through my spleen if Ah don't explain it 'fore the night is out.  Don't worry, Ah am gonna explain.  Just need to bring her to a room of her own, y'know, otherwise little Rose is gonna go bonkers when she wakes up.  Later!"  With that, Mnemosyne brushed right by Meier in an attempt to find the guest room.

Meier had to resist the urge to swirl around and attack Mnemosyne as the elder brushed by.  How DARE he think he could do this?!  How dare he…Meier's mind immediately went to the mark.  It had undoubtedly been well hidden beforehand; without a doubt, Mnemosyne had deliberately arranged her hair to show off that birthmark.  Despite its strangeness, Meier could accept that it was a birthmark – he could not sense death on that girl.  Strangely enough, his mind flew back to those last few moments before his beloved's eyes had closed forever.  Hadn't she been bitten in exactly the same place?

_If there was a chance to remedy the situation…_  Those were Mnemosyne's words before all of this happened, weren't they?  It was painfully obvious the elder was planning something, and that it had a good deal to do with this strange girl.  Rose…It immediately hit Meier as to why the Vampire of Memory would bring a girl named Rose into the castle, and he nearly laughed at the elder's little joke.  Charlotte's favorite flower, after all, was the rose…oh, Mnemosyne's sense of humor was often far too much to take at times.  In fact, it **was **too much to take.  The elder was going to wind up with a serious maiming if he kept with this horrible joke!

But why then had he mentioned that he had a way to remedy the situation, and for that matter, what situation was he talking about?…No doubt of it, the elder vampire would end up interrogated half to his final grave before he left the castle again.

Author's Note: Believe Mnemosyne or not, whatever you will – but if it were a bite, wouldn't Rose be either zombie-fied or a vampire by now?  Please think about it while I write up the next chapter, ok? ^_^


	9. The Eyes Are Windows

Dark Encore

Chapter Nine:  The Eyes Are Windows…

"You and me

And these shadows keep on changing

And I'm haunted

By the lives that I have loved and actions I have hated

I'm haunted

By the promises I've made and others I have broken, oh

I'm haunted

By the lives that wove a web inside my haunted head…"

- Poe, "Haunted"

Author's Note: This chapter will mostly consist of a conversation, and…not much else, but it's for the plot's sake.  Forgive, please? ^_^;

Notes to reviewers:

**Kelly10 - ** *bowled over*  Looks like I'll have to explain some things (read: make up stuff so that I don't sound like a total idiot – _just kidding about that!_) Being as old as he is - you wouldn't be able to know it from looking at his face though - Mnemosyne is quite able to delay the effects for as long as he sees fit. Insert reference to Doris Lang here, or I missed something when I watched that first movie.  Hence Meier's confusion; if Mnemosyne really did bite her and delayed the actual change for a good long time, then how the hell would anyone know she was a vampire?  Or rather, if Mnemosyne did bite her, then when?  Perhaps it was only recently enough for the effects not to kick in, hm?  I rest my case.  I do give you many congratulations for deciding to believe Mnemosyne, though.  After all, how many times do you find a vampire that's trustworthy? *gets mobbed by the Meier fans* X_X Does anyone feel like funding a resurrection?

~*~

Out of the curiosity that had lead to a tragedy so many years ago, Meier decided to go and check on the captive – if indeed that was how she was to be termed; from how Mnemosyne had phrased it, she seemed more like one of his patients.  Yes, Mnemosyne was a doctor, although of the strangest kind, even among vampires. He was able to cure amnesiacs and, if it was so wished, to give a person a glimpse of a past, whether it be their soul's or someone else's.  He was often paid in money by the vampires that could afford it (all those who could not only paid what they could,) and as of late all of his income had gone into repairing a damaged ship destined to go to the City of the Night.  According to himself, a close friend of his wanted to go to the City, and Meier's castle **was** an ideal launching ground…but the tale digresses…

Being the one in charge of the castle and all that entailed, it was merely a few minutes before Meier found out where the girl – _her name was Rose, wasn't it?_ – was being kept, and only a few minutes more before he reached the room, gliding over on dark wings.  He could have just broken down the door and killed the girl in order to make Mnemosyne pay for his insult, but he wasn't the kind of person to kill one that was (albeit temporarily) under his roof!  Therefore, he knocked on the door.  _Thunk, thunk._

A tired, quiet female voice said, "I don't know why I should get visitors, but it's all right…if you want to open the door, go on ahead.  I don't know how to lock this door anyway."  Meier almost smiled at this show of politeness, and then he opened the large, ornate door.  Inside the ornate vault of a room, facing the door, was that same girl the elder had dragged in.  Her luminous hazel eyes widened slightly at his appearance before recognition flickered inside said eyes and she calmed down.  She wore a white tunic of some coarse fabric (wool or linen, perhaps) along with black pants and similarly dark boots.  She still wore the cape the Vampire of Memory had given her, of course, and with good reason; although Meier never admitted it, nor did he need to care about it, the castle was one of the draftiest places on the face of the planet.  A slight inclination of her head, and the girl continued, "My name's Rose…in case you didn't catch it the first time we met."

"The first time we met?"  Now, wonder of all wonders, Meier was puzzled.  When had they met?  He took a look at her again and then remembered… "Ah yes.  You're one of those vampire hunters I met on the road a few nights ago, aren't you?"  His cool tone then turned ever-so-slightly curious, "If you are such good friends with Lord Mnemosyne" – how he despised using that title! – "then why do you hunt vampires?  You certainly do not seem the type…"

She turned away from him slightly, her eyes pensive.  After a long silence, she said, "I suppose no one ever figured out that I don't follow my friend around by choice.  It's not that I don't like her, indeed we're much like sisters, but I don't like killing people.  After she mistook Mnemosyne's attempt to help me for an attempt to kill me, she had me follow her around the world m-murdering people."  Her voice was incredibly sad, and Meier felt just a little pity for her.

He pitied her a small amount, yes, but that didn't stop him from asking the next question: "Why are you here?"

Rose's response to the question was to look right at him with those tired, thoughtful hazel eyes.  She looked uncertain – untrusting – for a moment as she searched Meier's face to find out the motive behind the question.  Apparently she came to a conclusion, because the next thing she said was, "According to Mnemosyne, I am here for his help…but I get the feeling that he told you otherwise.  I…I am sorry…"  She bowed her head again, clearly embarrassed and contrite.

Meier couldn't help the hint of a smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth.  "It's no trouble to me, Mnemosyne is well known for his pranks.  I was actually expecting him to do something like this."  The smile disappeared, and Meier noticed that Rose looked alarmed for a second before calming down.  "Tell me…what did Mnemosyne promise you, exactly?"  Rose's surprise at the question was so obvious that the small smile threatened to reappear on Meier's face.  "I simply wish to know, that is all…"

"That's actually a smart move, asking me about what I am doing here," Rose said after some silent reflection.  "Not knowing things can spell death if one's not careful.  Of course," here she giggled slightly, "what would I know about death, anyway…"

Meier nodded; that was a joke, of course.  For him, it wasn't too difficult to discern the joke in her statement, or the hint of sarcasm that might have been there anyway.  She, a vampire hunter, **would** know about death, and a good deal about it too – having the duty of dealing death to people would do that.  "From your profession, you would know quite a bit…speaking of which, I see you don't have any weapons with you.  That's foolish."

At the comment, Rose lifted her shoulders in a shrug.  "I…don't like fighting…and I don't like arrows either.  Arrows…they make me think of fire and its ability to kill…It's like I nearly lost something or someone to fire once…"  Meier realized then that this young lady was probably troubled, whether a great deal or not was uncertain – but she was troubled, it most likely had something to do with the past, and it failed to explain why Mnemosyne would help a human.  Since humans feared and hated vampires, he wouldn't normally work with a human… He needed to know why the elder would be so interested in this human.  Provoked only by his curiosity, he moved across the room to Rose and looked right at her, probing her eyes for some hint as to why Mnemosyne would be so interested – 

Agony; she could but watch as horrors unspeakable unfolded before her. "I love you. I can't go on without you…"  "I carry a heavy burden on my conscience."  The lights transformed into candles, the illusionary candles that surrounded her as she died.  "…You let me dream…" …but it didn't end there.  Discord; the spirit moved on, spiraling towards the future.  "You seem so familiar, it's like I saw you before…only it wasn't you, was it?"  "Why?  Why do you hate them so much?!  Why do we have to hunt vampires?!"  "We don't need to hunt him, I don't want to hunt him!  Let it be!"  Static; the present made a desperate guess at the past, willing it to the surface in a moment of dark clarity. "I chose this long ago."  Sorrow; she made her final choice, forsaking all once again in her desperate search.  "My destiny, my path was set when I made a choice long ago. Forgive me for my deceit, Erika…"

Meier swirled back, crimson eyes wide with shock at the lightless ones that he nearly fell into.  What was that?!  Lightless eyes blinked, regained their luminosity and lost the slight golden cast, and Rose stepped away, stunned, surprised, and yet not horrified.  "What **was** that?" she whispered, echoing Meier's very thought.

Curiously, hesitantly, their gazes locked again.  Crimson met hazel – and, shocked once again, each saw a person that haunted them in the other's eyes.  She saw the crimson eyes had haunted her for so long in the dreams of her last life; and what did he see?  He saw the eyes, the soul within those eyes that he had never thought to see again.  After so long, she had returned… These realizations were made in a brief moment, and both said in a chorus of joy:

"It's you!"

Meanwhile, two figures finally reached the other side of the bridge… 


	10. Into the Castle

Dark Encore

Chapter Ten: Into the Castle

"I am so sick of speaking words 

That no one understands!

Is it clear enough that you can't live 

Your whole life all alone?

I can hear you in a whisper

But you can't even hear me screaming…"

- Evanescence, "Where Will You Go"

Author's Note:  It's all winding down now…^_~  We're nearing the end of the story, folks!  Thank you for having read and hopefully enjoyed this – the end is nigh!  (Not this chapter, though.  Definitely not this chapter.  Probably next chapter.)

Notes to Reviewers:

**Avril – **Ah, good friend from real life…thank you for your review. ^_^

**Kitala – **In answer to the first review, didn't you read the note a while back saying that I will not speak a spoiler?  In answer to the second review – it looks like you figured it out, and it also looks like a few other people might be quite happy…

~*~

Looking up at the dark castle, Erika gulped in apprehension.  The castle was tall, perhaps ten or so stories, and as dark – perhaps even darker than the night that surrounded it.  The windows, shining yellow light that didn't reflect off the castle itself, seemed eerily like a multitude of eyes shining out, watching, watching everyone, watching forever…it intimidated her very much, and she felt very much like she would have in her much younger years; that is to say, she felt like running home and bawling into her parents or grandparents' shoulders.

But she couldn't do that.  Her grandparents were long dead, and her parents would probably be a little upset with her about her lack of courage, so there was really no way she could go home.  Not now, not when she was so close… She completely ignored the fact that that was how Leila had phrased it years ago, telling her how it was when she went out to a castle in an attempt to beat a vampire, and telling of the tragedy that resulted.  Things wouldn't end that way, thought Erika, oh no they wouldn't!  Meier would rest with his precious Charlotte, Rose would come back safe and sound and smiling at her 'sister', and they would leave and race D for the bounty.  Whether they won or lost, however, would be irrelevant; it would be a friendly rivalry.  Then they would go off and get some odd jobs for a while to fund a new van…oh, it would be wonderful, really!

Erika looked over at D, who was just gazing ahead at the castle.  Typical, she thought, half-surprised at the revelation.  This was actually a typical D thing; he seemed to be so used to being alone that perhaps the fact that he had company slipped his mind sometimes.  Ah well, it didn't matter.  In fact, she admired him for it; he wasn't as weak as most humans were, longing for companionship – and this was one of her flaws as well, because company was one of the biggest things in her life.  Not waiting for a go-ahead, she nodded, looked at the castle once more, and said (more to herself than anyone,) "Let's get going."  Then she rode off, slightly behind D, who had taken off before her…

Once they wandered into the castle, the two vampire hunters were greeted by a twanging, "An' a hearty welcome to y'all!  Welcome, welcome, and welcome again!"  While the voice still rang around the hall, its owner appeared in the form of a man wearing a rather plain outfit and a straw hat that shielded his face.  This man was floating about two feet off the floor and had a catlike grin on his face as he bowed mockingly to the hunters.  "Ah am Mnemosyne, one of the current residents of this house, played the guide for ya both, and yeah, Ah kidnapped that girl."

Erika's eyes narrowed as she brought out her blaster.  "So you not only tried to kill Rose four years ago, you kidnapped her again and lured me here so you could savor your victory."  Her voice warranted no argument, and indeed Mnemosyne just smiled and nodded in that quirky way of his.  "You bastard," she swore angrily.  "You damn bastard.  What is this about, some stupid revenge over the one that got away?  Or maybe you're helping Meier too, bringing D with and all that?  I oughta shoot you dead right now!"  To make good on that threat, she pulled out the blaster, pointed it at Mnemosyne – and was stunned into silence by the look she received.  Mnemosyne glared out at the both of them, his face lifted so that he could look directly at them, and his eyes glowed angrily.

"Now, if Ah was you, Ah'd go and put that weapon away, girl," he hissed.  "Of course Ah can't force ya to, since Ah ain't a what-ya-call-it – a fightin' man.  But Ah can ask and remind ya of what happened when Miss Leila – may she rest in peace – pulled a blaster on a high-level vampire.  She never got the chance ta shoot, an' if Ah do remember correctly (which Ah do, it's my gift,) it was that battle what made her leave the business forever.  Ya do look just like her, darlin', even if you look like ya seen less sun than her."  He laughed out loud at Erika's look of shock, but it was a soft laugh rather than the loud and hearty one he usually had.  "Ah know, it's a little confusin' there that Ah know the details when nobody who was from then is still alive – exceptions bein' D there, Meier, and oh yeah, Charlotte Elbourne, although at this rate she's gonna need that ring back for a weddin'.  An' it do look like Ah just fried yer brains there again, Miss Erika, as well as Mr. D if Ah ain't mistaken.  Well well, mind tellin' me what's on yer minds?"

D looked calmly at the vampire in front of him for a moment, before saying softly, "Mnemosyne…the memory of the world.  You remember everything that has ever happened in the world, can call on the details every now and then to suit your purpose, but you can never change the past."  At Mnemosyne's nod, D proceeded to add, "There is something you want to finish right here and now, and it has to do with that incident."  

Mnemosyne couldn't help scowling at him then.  "Damn you, you emotionless…person with a left-hand parasite!" he howled, ignoring Erika's look of confusion and the agitation of Left Hand at being revealed (although it didn't do anything stupid like speak, thank goodness for that.)  He calmed down immediately after that outburst, but a feral, angry look remained in his eyes.  "Ah do hate it when someone can read me as easily as Ah can read others, mind ya – Ah really do hate it – but Ah will not kill ya, simply because Ah don' feel much like killing anyone right now."  A look of pain crossed his face and then he looked, beseechingly, from vampire hunter to vampire hunter.  "Please believe what Ah say.  Ah don't like killin' people, even though bein' a vampire is centered around it!  And Ah don't want to kill you, never did.  Ah just…brought you here as witnesses…" He trailed off, and then muttered to himself, "The ship is all repaired now, and they probably figured it out…oh please, get out of here safely…"

Erika glared at Mnemosyne angrily.  "What in hell do you mean, you bastard?"  Her question was immediately answered – not by the vampire, but by the sounds of people walking on a balcony above them.  One pair of the steps sounded slightly like they were boots, and probably like the owner of said boots was male; the second…the second was a stepping sound that Erika could have recognized anywhere.  Whirling around and looking upwards, she was met by the sight of a balcony across the circular room and containing two people.  One of them she recognized immediately: "Rose!  Oh, thank God I…found…you?"  The reason for Erika's surprise was evident in that Rose was standing right next to Meier Link and that one of the vampire's arms was gently curled around her waist.

Rose's eyes reflected shock for a second before displaying sorrow – and, for the first time in all the years Erika had known her, Rose turned away from her 'sister,' eyes shut tight.  The look on Meier's eyes could have rivaled D's in emotionlessness, except – was that pity in his eyes?!  A whirr-creeeeeeak-clank-clank-whirrrrrrrrrr noise brought Erika's attention back to reality.  "Machinery," said D softly, before Mnemosyne's howl nearly drowned it out: "Get going, you blasted elevator, get moving!  Bring them to the ship already!"  As if in response, the balcony started to creak…

Erika whirled around again, glaring in confusion at Mnemosyne.  "Now I really want to know what you're talking about," she growled…


	11. Memory and Explanations

Dark Encore

Chapter Eleven: Memory and Explanations

Author's Note: While this SHOULD qualify as the final chapter, it's really not, as – if you will notice – it seems a little, ah, incomplete at the end.  The next chapter is a continuation of this one, a songfic, and an epilogue at the same time, and it will be uploaded soon, so don't worry!****

Notes to Reviewers:

**Kelly10 – **"Sympathy for all sides"?  I managed all of that?  Really? ^_^  Ahhhhhh, thank you so much!  *passes the cookie jars around to the reviewers once more*

**tina  - **Here's more of the story then.  Enjoy!

**Kitala - ** The answer's on its way…I think. ^_~

~*~

Mnemosyne smiled serenely at the blonde woman glaring at him not two feet away.  "Y'all're gonna gang up on a defenseless farmer, are ya?  Now that ain't fair.  Two against one, how unfair – two against one!  Or three, rather, but that makes it even worse fer me, don't it now?  That's so unfair."

The mocking, ridiculing attitude of the vampire was enough to drive Erika to the breaking point, and drive it did.  She snarled, "Unfair?  UNFAIR?! I'll tell you what's unfair, you bastard!  You destroyed my van – I wouldn't be surprised if that damn flat tire it got a while back was your fault too!  You also kidnapped my friend and now she's under some kind of weird hypnotism that is entirely your fault that makes her think Meier's completely harmless!  I'll kill you!"

Overcome by rage, she raised the blaster once again at Mnemosyne and fired, only to witness Mnemosyne evade it by ducking.  A frustrated growl echoed from her as Mnemosyne faded out and then, with insane speed that only proved he was not a normal human, rematerialized in front of her, that nonchalant grin on his face.

"Now, you listen and listen good, missy – Ah can't hypnotize people to make them think somethin' that's not true.  All my powers are related to the past, and Ah can't lie.  D knows it, an' so does that cowardly left hand of his – don't he?"  He looked over at D, who reluctantly nodded.  "See?  Us vampires can tell the truth if we feel like it.  Me, Ah just don't see any reason to lie to folk.  S' useless."  He floated away before continuing, "Y'all wanna know the truth?  D?  Missy?  Lefty?"

D said nothing, leaving Erika to have to make the choice.  "Fine.  You tell me - aaaaahhh YOU TRICKSTER!"  Her voice switched from dull curiosity to outright anger as she noticed what Mnemosyne had tried to distract them from noticing:  The elevator-balcony had started on its one-way trip to wherever it was headed.  "You damned trickster!"

For a moment, Mnemosyne's bright eyes seemed to crackle with indignation.  His voice rose to a hysterical howl, "A trickster – Ah, a TRICKSTER?!  Naw!  Ah'm telling you right here and now – D was right, Ah do have something to settle!  JUST LISTEN TO ME!"  He took a couple of deep breaths, unaware of the silence he had temporarily shocked the female hunter into (D, on the other hand, was naturally silent and could not be shocked any further into silence.)

He took a few steps back, his spine slightly slouched in an attitude of weariness.  His voice nearly broke as he spoke again, "Now…now, will y'all listen to me?"  Not waiting for an answer, he continued in a clearer voice: "Ah don't intend harm to no one, and all my life – human and vampire – Ah have done nothing 'cept what was for the greater good of things.  In this case…Ah failed to help someone once, long ago.  Ah was…detained…by those blasted Barbarois!"  His voice rose again in anger, and Erika could understand why.  She had heard of, though thankfully never dealt with, the accursed Barbarois – heard of their savage nature, heard of their strength…if they were paid to, they would even detain someone like Mnemosyne.  Speaking of the vampire…his voice died back down to normal levels, "The Barbarois in question were in the employ of Bloody Carmilla, and it's the infamous Charlotte Elbourne incident Ah am talkin' bout.  Ah knew Char and Meier weren't gonna find happiness without help, so Ah went after them.  Damn Carmilla – like Ah said…"

"Anyway, Ah did not manage to get there in time, could not even see the ship takin' them to the stars – Leila an' D did, if the ol' warp an' weft do tell true.  How do ya think Ah felt after that, knowin' that Ah failed to help someone?  Me, of all people…but Ah do digress.  Ah spent many a year a-wanderin' cross this little piece of land we all live on, not even botherin' ta help people any more.  What good would it be, with that guilt on my back?  Then…'bout twenty years ago, couple days after it really did happen…the ol' warp-an'-weft blared at me that Charlotte's soul had returned to earth.  Ya do know about that thing called reincarnation, right?  Well, it exists…

It exists, and Rose there is the girl the warp-an'-weft told me about.  Couple years afterwards, Ah came across a totaled spaceship – no prizes for guessing whose it was, and who was in there tryin' to die, yeah?  What more needs ta be said?  Ah helped Meier back here, went back into business helpin' people so Ah could fund repairs to a ship that was still in working order so they could go back to the stars, and…"  He trailed off, a sly shrug on his shoulders.

During this monologue, Erika's aqua eyes had widened and her hands – holding the gun – had lowered in shock.  She trembled in shock – then looked up to the slowly ascending balcony…elevator…whatever on Earth it was.  Rose was once again looking back at her after her moment of weakness, and the light hazel eyes reflected nothing but sorrow.  "We don't need to…"… "I chose this long ago." "…Forgive me for my deceit…"  So that was why she had said what she did.  It all came clear in Erika's mind then.  Even back when Rose obviously wasn't in full possession of her memories…she still had the same heart.  She could see it in those hazel eyes, the same eyes she had grown up saying hello to, the eyes of the girl Leila had watched leave this earth years ago.

"I've had enough…"  She could hear the old woman's voice echoing in her mind, same as it did whenever she managed to put in some quotes into the telling of her story.  Only it was her own voice now, Erika's voice and not Leila's that said the words, and they were aloud and not just a memory  "I've…had enough…"  She dropped the blaster to the floor, hanging her head in defeat.  Then she looked back at the elevator, which was starting to speed up.  She shouted:

"Go on, get out of here!  You two waited way too long for this!  Fly away!  _FLY AWAY!"_


	12. Epilogue Haunted

Dark Encore

Epilogue: Haunted

Author's Note: Yup, yup.  This would be the final chapter in this whole mess…**EXCEPT!**  I am considering doing a prequel centering on Mnemosyne and/or Rose, so as to explain either/both of them and their motives in more detail (since I pretty much didn't do THAT here, heh.)  It will also explain in more detail what happened to either/both of them during and after the events of Dark Encore.  If anyone would like me to do this, not to do this, walk the plank for suggesting it, or get it started ASAP for fear of some wrath, please tell me so in a review or other form of contact.  Okay?  Okay.

Oh yeah!  Anything written thusly: ~blah~ is a song lyric.  The song is "Haunted" by Poe, and I seriously consider it this story's 'theme song.' Forgive me if I get some lyrics wrong, but I'm only hearing it through a (very cool) AMV. Now let's get going!

**tina – **Yeaaaaah, we all love a good happy ending once in a while, don't we? ^_^

~*~

As the faint violet hints of sunrise arrived on the horizon, a dark castle shook on its foundations as a glowing starship emerged from its depths and rose towards the sky.  Faintly visible in the slowly eroding dark of night were the only three witnesses to the flight – a dhampire, reviled on both sides because he was of both and of neither; a human girl whose convictions had been shaken, much like her grandmother's so many years ago; and a vampire whose moves were as unknowable as his own distant past as a human.

Dark brown hair swirled and danced on the currents of the wind; the dhampire said nothing, although Left Hand would certainly have wanted to speak up.  But then again, Left Hand had been stuffed into a pocket and clenched so tightly that the parasite within would probably complain of suffocation once the other two people were gone.

~Come here, pretty please

Can you tell me where I am?

You…won't you say something?

I need to get my bearings…~

Neither of the other witnesses said anything as they, too, watched the ship depart.  After Erika's desperate cry of encouragement, Rose had smiled back at her friend one last time, before closing her eyes and seemingly dozing off.  Unconsciousness, after all, is no good substitute for rest, and Rose had obviously not been able to truly rest for a long time with all her nightmares.  Meier had smiled, kindness in his eyes as they flew towards the sky, and all too willingly provided a support for the exhausted human.

She would wake up this time; everyone was certain of that, and Erika was the most certain of all.  It would take a few hours, but Rose would wake up again.  She wouldn't be asleep forever like she was the last time she flew into the sky.  She would wake up again. When she did, she would either be en route to the City of the Night, or she would already be there, willing to shed the seeming restrictions of past lives and present lives and stay with the person she had been meant to be with since time began.

~I'm lost, and these shadows

Keep on changing~

As the ship faded into the distance, becoming one of the stars it would pass in its journey and then disappearing altogether, Erika chuckled slightly.  "Well…I guess I'll be using my horse to get home, if it didn't run off after that thing launched.  I don't think I'll be staying in the business anymore – I don't think I was ever meant for the business.  Mnemosyne, D, what about you two?  What're you going to do from here on in?"

The question was irrelevant for D; it was already understood that he would be going on hunting vampires until he disappeared from this earth as well.  Mnemosyne, on the other hand, was a total enigma and really needed to answer the question – which is exactly what he did.  "Me?  Ah think Ah'll keep on wanderin' fer now.  Don' have much to do other than that.  Maybe Ah'll continue helpin' people, but ya know, Ah am getting a little old.  Maybe Ah'll look into seeing the sun rise soon, or gettin' a bounty on my head so some vampire hunter can come along and exterminate me.  Ain't no other ways to die that Ah can think of that sound interestin', an' stayin' round ain't fun anymore, ya know?"

~And I'm haunted

By the lives that I have loved

And actions I have hated

I'm haunted

By the lives that wove a web

Inside my haunted head~

Erika nodded and half-smiled.  "Think I know how you feel…or maybe I don't.  I probably don't."  The red and yellow started to slip into the sunrise, effectively taking away the dark mystique of the scene that had just occurred.  Accordingly, Erika and D headed towards their respective horses and Mnemosyne walked into the dark and ruined castle so he could muse over things.  Perhaps he would come out again and become a fire; perhaps not.

The sunrise of that day witnessed only two people leaving the castle on horses – a dhampire and a mortal woman.  They rode in separate directions, each heading on alone.

~Don't cry, there's always a way

Here in November in this house of leaves

We'll pray

Please, I know it's hard to believe

To see a perfect forest

Through so many splintered trees~

Thirty years later, in a small town far to the west, surrounded by verdant pastures…

A pale man, wearing a dark outfit that really wasn't suited to a warm climate, rode into the town on a mechanical horse.  Nobody greeted him at the gates, but then again nobody threw stones at him either.  Those who met him just waved to him or nodded – apparently, this place was dhampire-tolerant, or they had learned about his good deeds from someone…

~You and me, and these shadows

Keep on changing~

"D…is that you?" said a voice that was just beginning to tremble with age, but still sounded very much like the proud and tough woman he had parted ways with some time ago.  D looked to his left, only to hear a chuckle from his right side.  "Gettin' a little slow there, D.  Maybe you should do like I did and start thinkin' bout retiring."  D then looked to his right side.  There stood a lady evidently in that state of life that D recognized as 'middle age just starting to get old.'  She had light blonde hair that had evidently lightened and grayed at the temples as the years passed by and aqua eyes that had not lost their vivacity, despite the fine wrinkles that curled their ways over the skin surrounding them.  She was slightly stooped now, and wore a light gray floor-length dress rather than her old hunter gear.

~And I'm haunted

By the lives that I have loved

And actions I have hated

I'm haunted

By the promises I made

And others I have broken

I'm haunted

By the lives that wove a web

Inside my haunted head~

"Erika," he said tonelessly, recognizing the woman at once.  Erika smiled and walked (was it just his imagination, or was she a little slower now?) over to D, a smile on her aged face.  Out of politeness, he asked, "How have you been?"

"Oh, I can't complain, D.  Can't complain.  Have a nice family, the runts are all teens now and ran out of the house the moment they realized they could.  Probably all drains on society, I imagine.  Haven't bothered to visit their own mother – but I can't complain about that either.  I'd ask you how you were doing too, if I didn't know that you probably won't answer."  Her voice seemed to tremble with sadness at the end of that sentence, and she diverted her attention to petting the horse's mane.

D recognized exactly what was going on.  "You still can't forget any of it…"

~Always…always

I'll always want you

I'll always need you

I'll always love you

And I will always miss you~

Erika looked up at him – and for a moment, she was once again the child that D had met at Leila's funeral, confused and lonely.  Then she chuckled and shook her head before meeting his eyes again.  "You got it.  Even after all these years, ah, I can still remember what Rose's voice sounded like, what Mnemosyne looked like…the castle, and everything that happened there."  A pause.  "And I'm getting old, that too.  I might die before ever finding out if Rose – sorry, Charlotte got to the stars safely with Meier.  Though I'll still be calling her Rose, because that's all I ever knew her as…from the day I first met her, years ago."

~Come here

No I won't say please

One more look at the ghost

Before I'm gonna make it leave~

D nodded silently, as if weighing his next words.  Then Erika spoke again, her voice a little stronger and clearer.  "You know, D…one of these days the vampires will be all gone.  You'll be out of a job, and totally alone.  What will you do then, D?  Where will you go?"

The dhampire looked silently down at her for a moment before speaking.  "If the vampires disappear, then there is a good chance I will become the hunted, as will any other dhampires that survive until that time.  I do not think of it often."

~Come here

I got the pieces here

Time to gather up the splinters

And build a casket for my tears~

Erika looked up at him and smiled an innocent smile, one hinted of a childhood far happier than her grandmother's.  "Oh, D.  You really don't try to think beyond the hunting, do you?  Leila told me that, once…she heard from a girl called Doris on the topic."  She yawned softly, covering her mouth with one slender hand.  It fell back to her side as she looked at D again, her smile tinged with sadness.  "Mmm…I daresay that if I say outside much longer I'll catch my death of cold.  I don't want you blamed for it."

Almost regal in her gait, Erika walked back to a house D presumed was hers, her back straight for once in (most likely) a few years.  Then she stopped, hesitating.  She looked back at D over her shoulder and turned to face him again.  Her eyes were full of sadness.

~I'm haunted

By the lives that I have loved…oh

I'm haunted

By the hallways in this tiny room

The echo there

Of me and you

The voices that are carrying this tune…~

"D…Grandma Leila was in love with you, all these years, until the day she died.  And for my part, I wouldn't have minded growing up with pointed ears and fangs, you know?"  The childish smile was back on Erika's face as she spoke again.  "But that's the way things turned out.  Better watch it, D – you might find yourself falling for someone someday.  At least, I hope you do, even if you don't hope so…I'd better head inside; the sun's starting to set and I'm getting sentimental.  Maybe we'll meet again; maybe I'll shake myself out of retirement.  Who knows?"

With that, Erika smiled one last time and waved at D.  "Goodbye now, mister.  And good luck."  With a swish of the gray skirt and a straight back, Erika walked into her house, proud and dignified even after all that had happened.

And D rode off as the sun set, off to find another quarry of the dwindling vampire race…


End file.
